The good, the bad, and the 2 Chainz.

Being a college freshman, I have been exposed to copious amounts of new things; everything from knowledge to alcohol induced puddles of vomit. However, something that flows into my eardrums a lot (thankfully not vomit) here at Brockport is rap.

Whether it be my roommates or hall mates, whether I like it or not, I am exposed to a lot of rhymes. When I was younger, I used to mark off all rap as trash that was not worthy of my listening. I still don’t like a good majority of it. However, I have broadened my musical tastes to include some rap. Anyone who knows me knows that’s like moving a stubborn mountain.

Alas, there is still some garbage rap. Like all music, there is a fine line between creative rap that is filled with talent and musicality, and “sound” that is devoid of any artistic expression. The reason I’m picking on rap is because that line, at least for me, is sharp.

The worse part about it, though, is that I believe the “bad rap” promotes a culture I’ve grown to loath. Being in college, I’ve heard the same 6 or 7 songs regurgitate lines that promote drugs, alcohol, money, and oodles of sex (I know I sound like an 80-year-old complaining about those darn kids, but bear with me.)

These songs are mindless drivel that make people believe they can have lots of sex, do lots of drugs, and drink like a fish without any sacrifice to their intelligence or character.

I’m not saying all people who listen to it are like that. I’m also not saying that music like that is bad all the time (who doesn’t have a guilty pleasure?) However, I equivocate it to eating only candy as opposed to a full balanced meal. Lil Wayne will rot your teeth out. The amount I hear these songs on campus is enough for some basic psychological repetition, which worries me.

If we want to skip my over-analytic nonsense, then at the very least the songs are just bad.

I’ve done a lot of talking, but now I’ll do some walking. Here are some good and bad examples of what I’m talking about.

Good – Same Love by Macklemore & Ryan Lewis f/ Mary Lambert

As much as I love Thrift Shop, Macklemore has a few other awesome gems on his album The Heist. “Same Love” is one of them. In a traditionally homophobic genre, he slams a traditionally homophobic fanbase with some powerful lyrics in support of marriage equality and tolerance. The song is musically solid in addition to delivering an important cultural message.

Bad – Good Kush and Alcohol – Lil Wayne Ft. Future, Drake & Orpheus

The opening lyrics to this song are as follows. “I’m on that good kush and alcohol. I got some down b**** I can call.” Drugs, booze, and sex all in the first two lines. Impressive. The song goes on to talk about these deep subjects for the rest of the time, the lyrics oozing out of the “artists'” mouths like motor oil while a weak beat attempts to hold the whole thing together.

Good – Mind your Manners – Chiddy Bang

This song isn’t as impactful as Same Love, but is a well put together track that shows obvious musical prowess. There are some light drug references and things of that nature, but it isn’t beaten over the listeners head with repetitive lyrics. This song shows that rappers can use that material in their music without it being a crutch.

Bad – I’m Different – 2 Chainz

Firstly, the piano tune of this song could easily be a three-year-old playing with a fisher price toy. Second, the lyrics made me audibly laugh. “Tell shawty to bust it open, Uncle Luke on. Got the present for the present and a gift wrapping.” Context doesn’t help that line, it still makes no sense. Another good one is “I am so high… attic.” I like to imagine Mr. Chainz was working on the song and just blacked out for a second, skipping the “like an” and just shooting straight too “attic.” This song doesn’t really promote much, but only because it’s so stupidly incoherent that it couldn’t possibly act as a vehicle for any sort of message, bad or otherwise.

Good – Heartless – Kanye West

I actually hate that I like Kanye West. He is one of the biggest {[expletive!]}’s in music and I hate his guts. However, bad people don’t necessarily make bad music. Heartless is a really well done piece of music. The lyrics are good, the beat is good, and the overall tones and sound is good. I want to hate it, but I can’t. The song tackles heartbreak in an earnest and very unique way.

Bad – Days and Days – Lil Wayne f/ 2 Chainz

It’s one thing when these people make garbage for themselves. It’s different when they sample real music and tarnish the good name of an artist. Barbara Lynn Ozen’s song Good Woman has been Frankensteined into this god awful train wreck of a song. If Lil Wayne and 2 chainz want to spew words about classless debauchery, fine, but don’t ruin classic songs in the process.

Good – Mockingbird – Eminem

This song makes me cry worse than anything Josh Groban does. Eminem uses a children’s melody as the background which plays with your emotions, then hits hard with the powerful lyrics about his daughter. You can feel how personal the song is, and shows that rap can be just as passionate as any powerhouse vocals one hears out there. His pain and suffering created art, which is a concept many rappers don’t seem to grasp.

Bad – Started from the Bottom – Drake

I’ll admit, this is reflective of my own bias. I hear this song around campus all the time and I personally hate it. It doesn’t exactly promote any awful things, but the musical quality is not there. Drake repeats the title of the song so many times that it makes my head spin. It uses basic marketing tactics to keep everyone playing the song and keeping it in their heads. It doesn’t take anything away from the table, but it certainly doesn’t add anything.

I’m looking forward to your hate filled comments!

**Update 4/20/2013**

I found a song by the rapper Hopsin that I couldn’t believe I didn’t find when writing this article. It describes exactly what I’m talking about in a passionate fury.